


Help me escape

by Rhian204



Category: Emmerdale, Liv Flaherty - Fandom
Genre: Original Characters - Freeform, Other, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-22 21:34:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15591192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rhian204/pseuds/Rhian204
Summary: Imagine if Rebecca wasn’t kidnapped but instead it was Liv.





	Help me escape

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you all enjoy! I’m not making a second chapter to this story but I hope that it’s good enough. It took a while to do so I reallyhope you like it. Please let me know how it was. Thanks!

Aaron couldn’t believe the sight in front of him when he came home. He expected to see Robert and Liv smiling while watching a movie or Robert cooking something delicious that he couldn’t. But instead it was completely different. Robert, on the couch, pale as ever, all while unconscious.

He rushed to the blondes side and pulled out his phone. Calling for an ambulance while placing a hand on Robert’s shoulder, he noticed something. A note that had his and Robert’s name on it in bold writing compared to most of it. His face dropped when reading it. 

‘Aaron, Rob. I’m not worth all the hassle and I want you to be happy. I’ve gone. Don’t know where but I’ll be ok. Now you and Seb can be a proper family without worrying about me. I love you. Liv.’

Aaron panicked. He didn’t know if the note was real or not because he was already too stressed about his lover being unconscious. The ambulance was on its way but he couldn’t just leave Robert. Not in the state he was in. So the man dragged him out of the house hoping that some fresh air would help him and then began to call out Liv’s name frantically. He couldn’t loose his sister. Not now. Not after everything that they’ve all been through together. 

-

Days later Liv was still missing. And they weren’t close to finding her. Everyone was panicked and tried their best to help find her. Everywhere people went they would usually just check around corners and alleys to see if she was there. But every time Liv wasn’t there. The police had began to suspect if Liv wasn’t a runaway but instead had been kidnapped. Aaron and Robert both cried their hearts out that night after the police came. Robert didn’t cry in front of Aaron though. He comforted him, waited for him to go to sleep and then cried to himself while looking at a photo on his phone of all three of them together, looking happy. Like a proper family. Some people knew one hundred percent that Liv wouldn’t have ran away. Even though she put herself down all the time and didn’t feel like she belonged, Liv still loved Aaron, Robert and Seb more than anything. And she would’ leave them forever. Not by choice.

None of them knew that it was Lachlan who had her, chained up in a cabin in he woods. Only an hour or less even from her house. Her home where Liv wished more than anything to be. The only reason that Lachlan didn’t kill her was because he saw Rebecca coming to the Mill, but she left when he threatened Liv and forced the teen to tell Rebecca that Seb was with Diane, which he was to be fair. And then he took her. Every other day he came with barely enough food and water to last a day, never mind two. 

-

Lachlan tightened the chain around her waist so it would be impossible for her to loosen. He refused to let her her away. “I’ll bring you stuff tomorrow. But you’ll have to wait until then.”

The girl was weak still, front he carbon monoxide. She knew that fighting the older boy wouldn’t do her any favours. He would overpower her within seconds. “So what now then? You just gonna keep me locked up forever?” She sighed weakly and watched as Lachlan walked towards the door, grabbing his rucksack on the way to it.

“For now.“ 

“You know that people will be looking for me. Aaron, Rob. They won’t stop until I’m back home. They’ll find me. I know they will. Even if I’m stuck here for years. Aaron wouldn’t just give up on me, not after everything that’s happened.”

“Well I guess you’ll have to wait and see. Because I think that he is going to come home to find his partner dead and his little sister missing.”

Her face dropped when remembering about Robert. And when the word ‘dead’ was mention her heart started racing. “What did you do to him? Please!” She tried sprinting over to Lachlan but her chain pulled her back, painfully. But Lachlan didn’t show any emotion when it happened, but Liv could tell trust he enjoyed seeing her in pain. “Why...? Why are you doing this to me?” She gasped while struggling to hide her tears. Not wanting to show how scared she was.

“Why?” Lachlan huffed and he looked down at her like an animal in a cage. “Because you had to be... you. You had to stick your nose in, where it didn’t belong. When you could’ve just minded your own bloody business and we could both carry on with our lives and be happy.”

Her face dropped with shock. “Happy? How could you be happy? You’ve clearly done something bad, worse than stealing from the B&B. So what is it then? You may as well tell me if I’m gonna be stuck in her. Who can I tell?” The teen said firmly, hoping that Lachlan would give in and talk her what she had been dying to know for weeks. 

He started to walked out the door. But just before he shut it he said. “You’ll find out soon.”

She watched as the door shut tight. Tears began to treat down her face and into the hard, cold and dusty wooden floor that she sat on. Looking around at her surroundings. An old sofa that didn’t look stable, a kitchen, and a bathroom that looked to be just close enough for her reach. The windows were barely letting in any sunlight because of the tremendous amount of dust on them from over the years. The girl had never been so scared in her life. There was no way that she could free herself, or reach any of the old and disgusting looking doors or windows. Slowly pulling her legs to her chest Liv sobbed as loud as she possibly could, shaking with fear. She didn’t know what to expect. Didn’t know how long she’d be there. Or how long she’d be alive for. But she knew that she was terrified.

-

After a few days Liv got use to being alone in the dark. And in the cold. There was no heating so she had to make the best of the clothes that she had. A short sleeved top, a pair of loose trousers, a jacket and a pair of summery trainers. Through the days her hair had become a mess, with no brush to make it decent, Liv was glad that she had a bobble with her, otherwise she’d be to brush her hair with her fingers. And instead of nice and tidy trousers Liv has been wearing filthy trousers with nothing but dirt and dust in them. They were no more back and white but instead grey and brown like. 

The only thing that kept her going was knowing that Aaron and Robert wouldn’t give up on her. Lachlan had said a thousand times about the letter that he wrote and that nobody seemed to be looking for her. Not anymore anyways. But not once had Liv actually believed him. And she wasn’t scared to show it.

“You know I heard Robert today.” Lachlan said one time as he took out a massive bottle of water that he expected to last half a week. But in the badly timed heatwave it was most likely to be finished by the end of the day. “He was saying how nice and quiet the Mill is now. And that it’s nice to not be worrying about you anymore. Turns out Aaron hasn’t been so relaxed in months.”

“You really think I believe you?” The teen scoffed weakly. It had been days ever since she had eaten something. All because she lost her temper with Lachlan and he decided that a punishment would put her back in place. And would also make her realise who’s boss.

“Why would I lie?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s the same reason that made you be a psycho. Or a killer. Or a pervert.”

Out of nowhere Lachlan swung his fist into Liv’s face, causing her to let a cry of pain and the next thing they both knew. Blood was dripping from her mouth. She spat as much as she could out onto the floor before giving the older boy a deadly glare that could haunt someones dreams if they weren’t evil like him. 

“You should keep your mouth shut. Because next time it’ll be worse.” 

“You won’t get away with this Lachlan. I got suspicious, somebody else will too. And you can’t just kill everyone in the village. And you know it. You wouldn’t have kept me alive if that was true.” The teen looked up at him now with a little smirk, knowing that she was getting to him. That her words would worry him through the days or weeks even that had still to come. 

But Lachlan tried his very best to hide the worry that he felt by her words. He simply just laughed to himself and and gave Liv a eye roll. “I don’t know if you’re actually serious or is it just the lack of food and water, but you’re talking rubbish.” He leaned closer and closer as he spoke to Liv, letting her see the evil in his eyes that she hadn’t seen before. “I will do whatever it takes to not be caught. And that means that if I have to kill the whole village, then I will.” The boys whispered in a deadly tone that sent shivers down Liv’s spine.

-

Hours after hours. Days after days. Weeks after weeks. Aaron and Robert struggled to cope. They both equally knew that Liv hadn’t ran away. They knew that someone had taken her instead. They just didn’t know who. And neither did the police. Nobody suspected Lachlan. Mainly because he was always offering to help find Liv in the woods, secretly just to stop people from going there themselves and discovering his secret cabin. Robert was in no fit state to look after Seb while constantly worrying about Liv. Where she was and if she was indeed alive. 

Chas was the same. With her baby not going to survive outside her stomach the fear of not knowing if Liv was alive just and it all worse. She couldn’t be the weak one, not around Aaron and Robert at least. Chas was the one that always gave them hope by her words. And was also the one that broke into tears in Paddy’s or Cain’s arms once after a while of being the stranger one and refusing to cry. And she was also the one that called Sandra, to let her know any news. And of course Sandra cared, just not enough to come over to Emmerdale and try and find her daughter. The woman had just got her life back together and learning that her daughter was missing just set her all the way back. She was back on the pills and now had her neighbour keeping an eye on her. Only because Chas had explained the situation and understood the struggle that she was endorsing. But that was the only reason. 

-

“How is he?” Paddy asked Robert worriedly when walking into the Mill to see Aaron asleep on the couch, looking exhausted. It was probably the first time he had in days. The bags under his eyes mad that clear. 

“Not good.” Robert answered honestly, he looked just bad in Paddy’s eyes. “This is the first time he’s slept in days so I’m leaving soon.”

“I just wanted to check on how you’re doing. I know that you’ve been his rock through all of this, and I also know how difficult that is as well.”

As quiet as possible Robert sighed and whispered. “I’m dealing with it. But it’s Aaron’s who we all need to focus on. I just need him to talk to me. He can’t go back to his old coping methods because of this. I won’t let it happen.”

Paddy could see the pain in the man’s eyes. And on his cheeks. There were tear stains in them from where he had been letting all of his pain out all at once. He placed a comforting hand on Robert’s upper arm and smiled sympathetically. “We’ll make sure that doesn’t happen too you know? You don’t have to take it on yourself.”

“I know, but I can’t help it. I just need something to focus on or I’ll fall apart. And if I get in a state then Aaron will too. I might have already lost Liv. I can’t loose him and Seb. I’ll have nothing left.”

Tears streamed down his cheeks one after the other. And Paddy could see them all clearly. Maybe too clearly for him liking. There was a pause as the silence took over. That was until paddy pulled Robert into a hug that the blonde was hesitant about. He hated the feeling of being the weaker one. When every time something had happened Robert was usually the person that kept everyone strong and would be the one to try fix it all. Sometimes he did and sometimes the problem was too hard to fix. Eventually Robert gave in and let paddy comfort him for a few minutes. Then they both decided to leave Aaron in peace to sleep for the first time in ages.

Everyone tried their best to find Liv. Even the people that disliked her. Like Bernice. And people that didn’t even know her. They had all bought a shirt that had her face on it like they did with Amelia. That kid was one of the main people that always went searching for her. She knew what Liv was feeling. Or she thought she knew at least. And that made Kerry, Dan and Daz take turns to go with her. Harriet too sometimes when they were all busy or working. But Gabby was the one person in the village that wasn’t her family that refused to go home until Liv was found. She spent hours asking people out in the streets if they had seen her, checking Hotten and Robblesfield if she didn’t have a lot of time to go to bigger cities or places. Bernice was told by people that she needed to put her on a leash, constantly. As a joke but it was still true in some cases. 

-

“Gabby? Where have you been?” Bernice asked worriedly when Gabby finally came home. In the middle of the night, while it was pouring down with rain and she disk to have a coat on. 

“Where do you think?” The brown haired replied rudely as she pushed her mum away from her and fell onto the sofa. 

Laurel and Bernice looked at her shocked. But Laurel seemed to understand the situation slightly more. “I’ll get you a hot chocolate sweetheart.” she muttered kindly and then rushed into the kitchen. 

“Do you not understand how dangerous it is to go out this late?! I’ve been calling you! Laurel’s been calling you! Your grandad has been calling you! And you still didn’t pick up!” 

“Well I was busy looking for Liv! Not that you care.” “Of course I care Gabby! Don’t be utterly ridiculous!” “What if it was me? Huh? Liv wouldn’t stop until she found me. And when Amelia was missing you didn’t give up. You were out all day.” 

Immediately the woman’s facial expression changed from furious to slightly angry but mostly sympathetic. “Gabby.” She whined at first. “I know that your worried about her but you can’t be out this late. Not every night, by yourself. You’re sixteen for gods sake.”

“But mum Liv’s out there all alone.”

“Because she chose to Gabby! She left a note and we all know what Liv is like.”

“You think she ran away?” Gabby scoffed, with a disgusted look on her face. “After everything? Liv wouldn’t do that.”

Out of the kitchen Laurel came in with a cup of hot chocolate and also a look on her face that showed that she was worried about what was about to happen next. She wanted to keep the piece between the mother and daughter. “Right lets just all calm down. Gabby you drink this and warm up and Bernice why don’t you come back tomorrow? It’s late and Arthur and Dotty are asleep. I don’t want to wake them.”

Quickly Bernice left the house. Feeling too tired to argue with her daughter. “Alright then. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

-

The teen was weak and tired and cold. Her body ached from all of the times that she had tried to escape and Lachlan had stopped her. Every time the boy hit her or pushed her to the floor. Sometimes causing the back of her head to bleed slightly. The bruises are visible, all over Liv’s now fragile and pale body. But the marks in her stomach were definitely the worse. Only because of the chain. That was Lachlan’s main use of punishment, if that is what it should be called. When Liv got mouthy and started to get to him he would simply just grab her chain and yank it so she’s in his reach. The marks were painful to even look at. It was one of the things that Liv had to do when she was alone. There wasn’t anything else. Besides trying to make a place that she could sleep or at least be comfortable in. But the closest thing that came to comfortable was the sofa but it was a battle to get in because of how far away it was. 

Three weeks after Liv was first taken the best thing happened. It gave her hope. That’s a strong word for her to use. But it was he right one. The kids from the village were on a ghost hunt. And Liv could head then talking. Her eyes lit up with happiness and tears began to appear because she was so grateful that she heard life. It had been a while except for Lachlan. But in Liv’s eyes he wasn’t a person. He was too heartless to be one. 

“I’m bored!”

“Yeah let’s go back.”

“April there’s no ghost!”

Liv began to scream to scream in the top of her lungs for help. Praying that she could be heard. But because of how weak she was her voice was croaky, and almost delicate like. To make even more noise the girl began to bang part of her chain against the wall, making an even louder noise. 

“Help! Please somebody! Help me!” She cried, her fingers became white from how tight they were clutching the chain. 

“Do you hear that?”

“No”

“What is it Arthur?”

“I can!”

“Shut up April.”

“What is it?”

“Hello?!”

Happiness that was so strong that Liv couldn’t even begin to describe took over when she heard someone say ‘hello’. It meant that someone could hear her. It looked like it was all over. That it wouldn’t be too long until she was free if the chains that kept her prisoner. That hurt her. And made everything seem almost hopeless. All of those feelings disappeared. That was until Liv heard the door slam open and Lachlan sprinted in, terrified. 

“No! Help please! Lachlan please! No don’t! No!” 

He shoved her onto the ground and grabbed a part of her chain and placed it just above she throat. “Shut up.”

All that came out of Liv’s mouth were small whimpers of fear. Everything came crumbling down once again. Her hope. Her happiness. Her faith in the kids of the village. That were so so close to freeing her from the hell that she was in. The tears that rolled down her cheeks were no long full of good. But instead heartbreak. 

They could both hear someone walking closer and closer to the cabin. It was April. At one point she knocked on the door and was about to open it. Lachlan’s heart stopped for a minute when he realised that he might have to kidnapped a child. But that realisation left his mind where another kid, they couldn’t figure out who, called her name.

“April come on! We’re gonna be late for food.”

They all disappeared, braking Liv’s heart in pieces that couldn’t be put back together. At least not in that place. Lachlan’s anger grew more and more as the silence continued. And so did Liv’s fear for what would happen next.

“You’re lucky that I won’t to kill right now.”

Secretly Liv felt slightly relieved from what he said. “What?” Was all that she could say because of the shock.

Lachlan jumped back up, throwing the chain not far while doing so. “You heard me. Because I want to. But I promised myself I wouldn’t. Not again at least.”

Slowly and Carefully Liv pulled herself back on to her feet. It was difficult but she managed it. “What did you just say?”

He was falling apart. Liv could see it in his eyes. There was fear, fear that was bigger than hers. And hatred. But it looked like it was towards himself. He was struggling to cope with everything that he had done. All of it made sense to Liv. Her body shook with fear when she realised that he had killed.

“You... you killed someone.” 

“Yeah. Yeah I did. And you should be thankful. Because the only reason you’re alive is because I don’t want the guilt of killing another person.”

She didn’t what to do. All that Liv could think was ‘what do I do?’ The teen thought for a moment. And realised that this was her chance to get the truth that she wanted. The truth that she demanded at the begging but didn’t receive. This was and might have been her only chance.

“Who was it? I can’t do anything. I’m stuck in here. And maybe I can try and... understand.” She said carefully. Wanting to sound convincing, knowing that even though Lachlan was older than her, he was still struggling. And that was her advantage. A great one. 

His cheeks were staring to turn red and water glazed over the boys eyes. He slowly sat down on the floor with his knees close to his chest as he leaned against the wall behind him. Liv did the same, still watching him with curious eyes. 

“My mum. And my grandad. And Terry when I found him.” He managed to get out after many long seconds of silence. “And... and Gerry.”

Straight away both of them broke into tears. Liv’s body shook with heart-brake when hearing Gerry’s name. Her best friend, her only friend for a while. And she thought that it was an accident, when really. It was Lachlan. Her anger built up inside of her. She was prepared to claw his eyes out and watch him die like he had to Gerry. But knowing that it there was probably more to know, Liv stoped herself.

“I didn’t mean to kill my grandad. But my mum had just made Belle brake up with me and I was so... angry with her. I didn’t think of the consequences. I didn’t think about grandad and Rebecca. I was just angry at her. And I wanted her to suffer.” He looked at Liv and saw the pain in her eyes as she struggled to not scream. “This was stupid. You don’t understand.”

“No I do.” She lied. “It’s like you couldn’t care. You just want revenge. And the consequences don’t matter until they happen. But then it’s too late.”

“Yeah. That’s sound about right.” Lachlan’s sighed as he closed his eyes to imagine what it would have been like if things were different. If he didn’t kill anyone would he still be with Belle. And what would Gerry be doing.

"So um. What... what about Gerry? Why did he have to die?”

“I didn’t want to Liv. I swear I was going to let him live. But he found out about the crash and kept on making jokes. He just wouldn’t stop and I snapped. I knew that he would get me in trouble. So I shut him up. For good.”

“So it wasn’t your fault then.” Liv’s stomach turned with horror as she said those words. She felt disgusted in herself. Even though she knew that she was lying. 

But Lachlan bought it. He was in too much of a state to noticed anything. “But I killed him.”

“But he was messing with your head.” The teen over exaggerated. “You just did what you had to. I get that. That’s what I did to make myself feel better. I drank. But didn’t think about what would happen because of it.”

“Why aren’t you mad?” 

“I am. Trust me I really fucking mad. But I said that I wanted to understand. And that is what I’m trying to do. It hurts, a lot. But I needed to know. And I’m glad that I know.” There was a long pause between the two of them. She could see how bad Lachlan was trying to stop crying. But now that he had started he couldn’t stop. And Liv then suddenly remembered something. In his back pocket there was the key. To her chains. She had seen him put it there every time that he needed it. To either loosen her chains because they they were beginning to suffocate her or where to loose. And also his phone. If she could get one or the other then her hope would come back. “Do you what a hug?”

Lachlan didn’t even think for a second. He was too busy crying to think clearly. Hesitantly he nodded and wrapped his arms around Liv. Who was slowly reaching down to his pocket after seeing the key and his phone. She only had moment to make up her choice on what to snatch. In the end it was the key. Only because it was smaller and she could fit it up the sleeve of her jacket. 

“It’s ok. You’re not a bad person. You just need someone to help you.” Liv whispered as a distraction, thinking that it would make him go into even more of a state. Which it thankfully did. 

Carefully Liv tried to lift the key, once it was just about in her grip she waited a few moments, feeling terrified that she might get caught. When the moment of fear passed she carried on and with her help of her other hand now, Liv managed to slip the key down her jacket sleeve. 

“I’m sorry.” Lachlan’s muttered, tears still streaming down his face.

“Don’t be. You’re a good person. You just made some bad decisions.”

Suddenly the two of them heard Lachlan’s phone ring. He pulled it out his pocket while Liv took a breath of relief that she didn’t choose the phone to take as she went back to leaning against the wall. 

“It’s Belle.” 

Lachlan jumped off of the floor and rushed out the door. “I’ll be back later.” He said just before answering his phone. 

-

April, Arthur, Cathy and Heath all stormed into the Woolpack arguing over what they heard in the woods. 

“There was! I heard it.” April screamed, acting the attention of Chas who quickly called for Marlon.

“Hey what’s going on here?” Bob question worriedly as he broke up his kids from the two others.

“They think that they heard a ghost in the woods.” Heath explained.

“We did.”

“No you didn’t.” Cathy snapped. “Ghosts aren’t real Arthur. Only babies believe in them.”

“Cathy!” Bob said in a threatening but kind tone. “All of you just be nice.”

“What’s happening?” Marlon rushed to April with a confused look written on his face. “April?”

“They’re being mean.”

“No we’re not!” Heath replied harshly.

Quickly Bob did his best to calm all of the kids down. “Alright. Let’s get you two to Brenda’s and Arthur you can hop on back to your mum’s.” He ushered them all out of the Woolpack making it quiet once again. Except for April of course. 

“I heard it. The ghost was banging on something. It was mad.”

“Mad?” Marlon stared at his little girl slightly confused. He could tell that she was describing something that had happened and wasn’t in her imagination. But it also sounded alarming. “Did you see the ghost sweetheart?”

She shook her head. “No. I heard it coming from a house. But it wasn’t there when I got there.”

Immediately Marlon exchanged glances with Chas when hearing that. They both knew that it could be anything but with Liv missing and knowing that there hadn’t been a single mention of a house in the woods they both thought that the police should know. 

Chas rushed to call them and waited for a few minutes for them to answer. The stress in her face was growing more and more by the seconds.

“April what did the ghost sound like?” Marlon the asked anxiously.

“It was banging really loud. I couldn’t hear it’s voice.”

“Ok then what did the house look like?”

“Small. And dirty. The door wasn’t locked I think. The ghost was in there. I’m sure of it.”

-

Liv frantically tried to unlock the lock that kept her chained up as quick as she could. She tried over and over again, thinking that it was either the angle or she was doing it wrong. But Liv knew that the truth. She was just to scared to face it. It wasn’t the right key. 

“Come on. Come on.”

She pushed the key into the lock as hard as she possibly could. Not caring about the sore feeling that it caused in her fingertips. Desperate to escape and go home. But the girl pushed it too far in. And the key snapped into two. Liv’s heart broke once again when seeing the two broken pieces. They sat in her shaky hand as she stared down at them. 

Suddenly Lachlan walked in to be welcomed by the sight of Liv beginning to cry and her pulling her hand behind her back to hide the broken key. His face dropped at the realisation that she was hiding something.

“What are you hiding?” He asked in a dark and threatening tone as the door shut tightly behind him. In his hand was down food and drink. And also a sleeping bag. It looked to be that he was thankful for how Liv was earlier. But he quickly realised that it was all fake. 

“Nothing.” Liv lied, quickly jumping up while shaking her little head. 

“You’re lying.”

“No I’m not. I swear! Is that for me?”

“It was.” Lachlan answered, looking down at the sleeping bag and then back up at the chained up girl. “Not anymore.”

He rushed over to her and grabbed her hand, revealing the key. And also letting his anger be shown. Gripping on to Liv’s hand and the other now the chain tighter, while his face turned red from the fury inside of him, Lachlan yelled in her face. “YOU LIED! YOU STUPID, FUCKING, GIRL!”

“I’m sorry! Just let me go you monster! I won’t tell anyone! Please!” Liv begged with all her heart. Finally letting Lachlan see how broken he had made her. With was the opposite of what she wanted. 

“YOU’RE DEAD.”

That sentence sent goosebumps down Liv’s spine. Knowing that it was true. She felt his breath on her cheek. Fear grew inside of her. But some of it disappeared when hearing the loud sirens that seemed to be coming closer by the second. Lachlan’s face dropped, he couldn’t have been any less scared than Liv. Because those sirens were the best thing that she had heard in her neither life except for the sound of kids earlier that day. 

Panicking Lachlan grabbed his pocket knife and put it against Liv’s throat as the two of them waited for the police to come in. He knew that this was the end. But refused to go down without a fight.

“Is there anyone in there?”

“Don’t move.” Lachlan whispered into Liv’s was, making her even more scared. She was shaking like a leaf.

The door was banged open by a group of police officers, but none of them were expecting to see the sight in front of them. 

“Don’t come closer!” Lachlan yelled furiously. “Or I’ll kill her.” His grip tightened on the knife. Causing Liv to let out a whimper. 

One of the officers knew who Lachlan was. He had seen talked to him about Liv’s disappearance a few times. But couldn’t tell who he girl was because of how dirty and fragile she looked compared to two weeks ago.

“Lachlan White? Am I correct?” One of the officers asked carefully. The rest of them stood back to let him deal with the situation. Down if them when your if sight which only Liv noticed.

“Yeah.”

“Why don’t you just out the knife down? There’s no need for violence.”

“Not gonna happen sorry. Without this then I’ve got no reassurance that you’re not gonna arrest me. So I think keep it.”

“Ok.” The older man sighed, annoyed. “Well can we at least have the girl? She needs to be checked over by the looks of it.”

The boy laughed for a moment after hearing what the officer had just said. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed but she’s trapped.”

The man looked at the chain tied around Liv’s stomach and followed it with his eyes all the way to the pole were it had been tied around for weeks. “Lachlan you do realise what you’re doing is very serious? And none of us are leaving until we have the girl.”

Suddenly a female officer rushed up to the male one and whispered something in his ear. 

“What is she saying? Stop it!” 

The woman rushed back off, leaving the three of them alone again. Liv let out a quick cry and tried to loosen the chain. Because of how far that she was standing it had tightened. 

“I’ve just been told that this girl is Liv Flaherty?” He turned to looked at Liv with a gentle smile. “You’re family is being called now. They’ve been off their heads with worry.”

“I knew they wouldn’t give up on me.” 

Straight after Liv spoke Lachlan pulled on the chain, making it go tighter, which made Liv cry out in pain. “Shut up! All of you! Tell them that you were wrong.”

“We can’t do that Lachlan. You know that. And I don’t think that they would listen even if we did. Why not you just give us the knife and then we can’t talk properly. The chain is starting to hurt her. You can see that it’s very tight around her stomach. How about you let one of us help her and then we can help you?”

There was a moment of silence as Lachlan struggled on what to do or say. He was trapped, and sooner or later the police would take him. After minutes of anxious waiting. Liv hoping that his answer would be a ‘of’ or ‘fine’. As well as all the police outside, looking trough the windows.  
“No I can’t.”

Suddenly he let out a roar of pain as Liv bit down on his arm and pushed his it away from her face so he didn’t cut it. The man immediately sprinted to Lachlan and battled him on to the ground while a whole bunch of officers rushed in. Some helped arrest Lachlan while others tied their best to help Liv. 

“It’s gonna be ok sweetie.”

“Just a little longer.”

-

Aaron, Robert, Chas and Paddy ran through the hospital as fast as they all could. All overwhelmed and shocked and desperate to see Liv after worrying about if she was ok for so long. They saw two officers standing outside a room and immediately assumed that Liv was inside.

“Aaron Dingle?” One of them called when seeing how frantic he was. 

“Yeah! Is she ok? Please tell me that Liv’s ok?” The man pleaded. Tears streaming down all of their cheeks as they all rushed to the door.

“She’s fine. You can see her.”

Aaron barged into the room to see Liv lying in a hospital bed. All of her bruises on show, except for the ones on her legs and stomach of course. Her hair had been washed and was now in a bobble to stop the water soaking everywhere. And her pale skin was still there. She was weaker. They could all tell just by looking st her.

“Aaron?”

The man sprinted to hold his sister as tight as he could. He burst into tears, as did she. And Robert too when he joined in on the hug. They couldn’t let go of each other. It was only when Chas let them know that the doctor was there that they did. But still they all held hands. 

-

After a long and slightly boring chat with the doctors Liv was left alone with Aaron and Robert. Chas had her long and meaningful hug and decided to leave the three of them alone, so she went to get some food soft Paddy. 

The conversation was horrible, but everyone knew that it needed to happen.

Aaron spoke first. “Liv... did he hurt you?” 

“Yeah.” Liv whispered, feeling ashamed as the tears built up again. “He hit me. A lot. And tied me up. I’ve got a really bad bruise on my stomach. It hurt a lot.” 

“He didn’t... touch ya then?”

“No. Not like that at least.”

Already Aaron and Robert felt like they could kill Lachlan. And they would have if they had the chance to. Neither of them cared about what would happen to them. But what that monster did to Liv could destroy the rest of her life. She’d struggle to sleep, and trust people forever she’d die inside because of this. 

“What did he feed you?” Robert muttered, using his extremely worried voice as he gave Liv eyes of desperation without even realising.

“Not much. Leftovers. I couldn’t leave the place and I couldn’t reach the windows. You know, because if the... chain. I didn’t eat in front of him a lot. Only after he stopped bringing me food for a few days and I was starving. All I got was crust and spare meat that was cold. He brought me a cupcake once. But that was it.”

“I’m sorry Liv. I trusted him. Me and Rob we... believed him when he said that he was looking for your. I should have been able to tell that he was lying to me. I should’ve protected ya from him when I had the chance.”

Immediately Liv took Aaron’s hand and started to act like the grown up for a minute. “Aaron you didn’t do anything wrong. I was pushing my luck with the messages and I’m lucky to be alive. Compared to the others it’s a miracle. Not joke.” She explained, barely taking breaths between sentences.

Both Aaron and Robert’s foreheads creased with confusion. “Wait? What do you mean, the others?” Robert piped up.

They stared at Liv as she struggled to stay calm. To not burst into a brake down and cry. A lot at least. “He’s killed people.”

Their faces dropped with horror and shock as they both listened to what Liv told them. All three were battling their emotions that were inside of them. Bit didn’t admit it, even though it was easy to see.

“He caused the crash that killed Chrissie and Lawrence. He wanted his mum dead and didn’t care about anyone else. He didn’t care about the consequences. And then he killed Gerry because he found out. And then Terry and he was going to kill us. He when I went missing it was because I caught him leaving the Mill and then he attacked me. And then I woke up with a chain around my stomach and he was there! Heartless.” The teen took a moment to breath before carrying on. Aaron wanted to stop her but could tell that she needed to say it. “He was loosing it and I was acting like I understood. I told him that it was ok. I hugged him! What type of life f person hugs a murderer?”

“Hey just breath.” Aaron whispered soothingly when seeing how panicked Liv was becoming. She was disgusted with herself for doing what she had to escape, but she didn’t see it that way.

“No! No how could I say that? I said I understood. How can I understand that?!”

“You did what you had to do to escape. You’re safe now and he’s gonna to in hell for everything that he’s done. The police are coming later to talk to ya about it all and then when this has all blown over we can focus on helping you through whatever we need to. You don’t realised how proud we all are of ya. You didn’t give up on hope. Some people would have given up and ended i all quickly. But you’re back home with me. With us. And that’s what matters.”

The man pulled Robert and Liv into another group hug. Everything happened like it was suppose . Lachlan was sent down for life. Rebecca learned the truth and went to talk to her family at their graves. She felt better afterwards. As if she had cleared the air with them now knowing the truth. And never saw Lachlan again. Meanwhile Belle struggled at first. And blamed herself. But Liv helped her through it all. Never blamed her once. And they grew closer.

But Liv herself had a few setbacks. Fighting her demons was the hardest battle she ever faced. But Aaron and Robert helped her through it. Let her sleep in their bed with them. Stayed up with her when she was too scared to go to sleep. Everything they could.

She survived hell.  
And the aftermath was hell too.  
But hell ended.  
After Liv decided to fight it.  
She fought it until it was better.  
And when it was better she was stronger.


End file.
